From the Firefly Shops

[J. S. Bach]

It was an early version of a pig flat; it had sides so B&O classed it as a gondola.

[rogruth]

OK. Now what is a pig flat?

[Wolf]

Pig flat is short form for a piggyback flat car--a flat car assigned to carry
piggyback trailers (or containers), or as in this case, can also be a low-sided
gondola rather than a flat car.

[rogruth]

Thanks, Dave & W0lf.
Surprisingly, at least to me, I had not heard those terms before.
I say surprisingly because I have had interest in railroads all my life.
Probably more in the real things than in models. But I like anything about any kind of trains.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

[E7]

Nice work Rufus!

Rich

[bob turner]

I agree. More pictures, please.

[Wolf]

Ditto on the two comments above.
Have you ever posted a closeup of the emblem, or did I just plain overlook it if you have?

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Thanks, lads.

Ditto on the two comments above.
Have you ever posted a closeup of the emblem, or did I just plain overlook it if you have?

Don't think I ever have, so here it is:



BTW, that's one of the new Lionel Gla cars,

[Tom Dempsey]

Did you reletter a decorated car or start with an undec?

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Did you reletter a decorated car or start with an undec?

Started with a PRR lettered car.

[big bad jim]

That's a good looking car.

I'm curious if somebody can explain how high mounted brake wheels worked with open hopper cars (if they actually did). I always understood them to be up there for brakeman to set from the tops of cars. There would seem to be a logistical issue with that arrangement for hoppers.

Jim

[rogruth]

I remember ones just like those in the photo into the late 1940s in a PRR branch along the Ohio River. There was a little platform to stand on.
There were more of the cars with the vertical brake wheels and they were mounted below the top pf the end.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

That's a good looking car.

Thanks, but I can't take credit for much more than the re-lettering, etc. Decent enough looking car from Planet Lionel.

I'm curious if somebody can explain how high mounted brake wheels worked with open hopper cars (if they actually did). I always understood them to be up there for brakeman to set from the tops of cars. There would seem to be a logistical issue with that arrangement for hoppers.

Why wouldn't they work? Ok, dangerous and all, but those were different times.......

[big bad jim]

Why wouldn't they work? Ok, dangerous and all, but those were different times.......

I always thought a brakeman would work a series of cars, walking across the tops of them, setting handbrakes. Nothing to stand on for a hopper, let alone walk across end to end, at least if empty.

But I see the platform that Roger mentions, and I also take note that these cars appear to be air brake equipped. I was thinking of the high brake wheels as being a vestige of the days before air brakes.